Sarah was pressed into the passenger seat of Eli’s nice new truck, staring out at the expanse of land before them, which wasn’t hard to do. Eli kept stealing glances in her direction, wondering what was going on in Sarah’s head. Eli pulled out onto the highway as she turned down the radio so they could barely hear it.
“Penny for your thoughts.”
“What?” Sarah spun, her eyes wide.
Eli grimaced. “What are you thinking? You seem miles away.”
“Oh.” Sarah shifted her shoulders, rolling them, and settled into the seat again. “I was mostly just thinking about how I’ve done more things I’ve never done before in the last week than I ever thought I’d do.”
“Like what?” Eli asked, but she pretty much already knew the answer. Sarah was a city-slicker, and she was pretty sure anything Eli did or asked Sarah to join in with was brand new.
“I have never fed a baby cow before.”
“They’re charming, until they’re not.”
Sarah chuckled. “I miss Buddy.”
“There will be more Buddy’s.” When Eli risked a glance at Sarah, she had a wistful and dreamy look in her eyes, those dark eyes that she was finding so much harder to stay away from as the days went on. Since their stint fixing the fence, Eli had found she was enjoying Sarah’s company far more than she had thought she should.
Sarah’s voice was clear when she asked. “Will there?”
“Every year.” Thin lips bowed into a smile, and Eli couldn’t help the reciprocating grin she gave. “What about bingo? Have you played bingo before?”
“Probably not like this, but yes, I have actually played bingo before in a competition setting.”
“Have you now?”
Sarah chuckled. “My gran used to take me with her to play at the senior center, or really, she took me more so she could cheat.”
“How do you cheat at bingo?”
“Oh, those ladies there are very serious about their bingo.”
Eli cocked her head to the side. “Seriously, though, how do you cheat at bingo?”
“Switching out cards, throwing in extra number balls, distracting the other little old ladies so they aren’t paying attention when their number is called.”
“Devilish, weren’t you?”
“Still am in some ways.” Sarah laughed, her quiet voice echoing in the cab of the truck.
Eli’s heart danced around and sent her stomach into a spin of nerves. She had no idea why she was nervous, but there had been a definite shift in how she and Sarah interacted in the last day. They seemed almost like friends.
“My parents used to drag me to play with them, which was fine when I was young and could just run around outside with the rest of the kids. I stopped going when I was in high school but started up again recently.”
“Why go?”
“I’m a business owner in town, and the money goes to support our schools’ athletic teams. It’s important people in town think I’m generous. Usually it’s just a gossip pit, though.”
“Oh. You…you don’t think they’ll talk about us, do you?”
Eli furrowed her brow. “What do you mean talk about us?”
“Just…that I’m still here. You took me to the sausage supper. I don’t know. I was just—”
“You’re a guest atIndigo. I often bring guests to town events. It’s part of the package deal. They won’t think anything of it.” Eli’s stomach clenched. She hadn’t realized Sarah spending time with her in public was going to be such an issue in terms of Sarah’s public view of the world. Apparently, that was all Sarah was concerned about.
The rest of the ride to town was in awkward silence, but as soon as they got to the 4H building out on the fairgrounds, the tension in Eli’s chest eased. She shut the door to her truck and waited for Sarah to get around to the other side before she walked in.